


Always There to Hold Your Hand

by Carrot_Bunny



Category: Free!, Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Adopted Children, Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - Future Fish, Alternate Universe - Pirate, Alternate Universe - Splash Free, Food Trucks, Future AU, Gem Fusion, Genderbending, M/M, MakoHaru AU Week, Mangaka AU, Merman Nanase Haruka, Pirates, Sekaiichi Hatsukoi-style setting where Makoto is Haru's editor boyfriend, Steven Universe AU, YES I HAVE WRITTEN A GEM FUSION AU HURRAH, magical au, merman au, will add more tags as more oneshots are posted, yes I know not very original
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-01
Updated: 2015-09-08
Packaged: 2018-04-18 11:36:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 12,566
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4704656
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Carrot_Bunny/pseuds/Carrot_Bunny
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Day 7 - Mangaka AU</p><blockquote>
  <p>“I’m drawing this oneshot for the next issue of the magazine where a fashion design student gets a biology major to be his model and they start spending time together. Only…” Haru finally looked up from his drawing. “I don’t know the first thing about fashion design schools.”</p>
</blockquote><br/>(Read the other entries for MakoHaru AU Week at Tumblr @makoharuau!)
            </blockquote>





	1. It All Started When He Fainted - Splash Free AU

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Sir, could you give me a drink of water? Just a small sip, please.”
> 
> Makoto gave an apologetic shake of his head. “I’m sorry, we don’t have any water here.”
> 
> “Oh.” Then the traveler promptly collapsed onto the dusty ground in a dead faint.

Makoto dropped the damp cloth into the small basin of water, then felt the stranger’s forehead with his palm. Still hot. Sighing worriedly, he drew the cloth out from the basin and rubbed the skin under the stranger’s locks of dark hair again, gently wiping away the beads of sweat on his face.

The entire kingdom had been stuck in a dry spell of late, until even the typically friendly Makoto had begun to dread seeing people walking down the street towards his shop. He hated having to tell them that he really did not have any water to spare, but he had no choice but to reject those who only wanted a gulp of water to quench their thirst. He could’ve just closed the shop and stayed in if he wanted to, yet he still kept it open for want of something else to do in this stifling heat, even though the chances of a customer wanting to buy one of his pots were pretty much zero when there wasn’t even any water left to store in them.

So when he saw the blue-cloaked traveler leading a camel and heading in his direction, he could only put on the best smile he could manage and face the inevitable.

“Sir, could you give me a drink of water? Just a small sip, please.”

Makoto gave an apologetic shake of his head. “I’m sorry, we don’t have any water here.”

“Oh.” Then the traveler promptly collapsed onto the dusty ground in a dead faint.

Amidst the ensuing panic and alarm and  _oh God is he **dead**  please don’t let him be dead_, Makoto somehow managed to get the unconscious stranger up the back stairs and into his living quarters above the shop, where it was at least cooler and generally preferable to being sprawled on the road in the glaring heat outside. He’d drawn up a basin of water from his meager stores immediately - he couldn’t worry about his own needs when someone’s life was at stake. An eternity had passed since he’d brought the stranger in though, or at least it felt like it, but although he’d tried everything from dribbling water over the stranger’s lips to taking off his linen shirt and rubbing the wet cloth over his chest, the stranger had not stirred even once. Until -

“Ngh… what - "

“Oh, thank God,” Makoto breathed as the stranger’s eyelids fluttered open. He bent down to dip the cloth in the basin once again, then turned back to see startlingly blue eyes fixed on him.

“Where… where am I?”

“You’re in my home. You collapsed outside my shop some time ago, so I brought you in. I’m really happy that you’ve woken.” This time the smile came easily to Makoto’s lips, buoyed by his immense relief.

“My - my camel - “ The stranger struggled to sit up, but Makoto quickly moved to guide him back into a lying position.

“Your camel’s fine - it’s still tethered outside my shop. Please do stay still, you’re still rather weak.” He paused. “Wait here a minute.”

The stranger’s blue eyes followed him as he disappeared through a doorway to the side, then reappeared just as quickly with a cup in one hand. “Here, drink this,” he said as he carefully helped the other sit up and put the cup to his lips.

There was a temporary silence in the room save for gulping sounds as the stranger drank. When the cup was dry he leaned back and wiped his moist lips with the back of his hand, waiting until Makoto had set the cup down before speaking. “I thought you said there wasn’t any water here.”

A pang of guilt went though Makoto. “Well, um… I did have a small ration set aside…” he said slowly as he picked up the cloth from the basin and wrung it dry, just so that he had an excuse not to look the other in the eye.

“Please don’t misunderstand, I wasn’t blaming you.” At those words Makoto’s eyes turned back towards the stranger, who had now moved into a cross-legged position beside him. “I know about the drought, so frankly I wasn’t expecting anyone to give me a drink of water even if I asked. And people collapse from heatstroke all the time, especially in this weather. Yet not only did you come to my aid, you even gave me your water when you didn’t have much to begin with.” A soft glint emerged in the blue depths of the stranger’s eyes. “Thank you.”

Makoto suddenly felt flustered at this expression of gratitude for no apparent reason. “Oh, no need to thank me, I was happy to help you, er - “

“Haru.”

“Haru, yeah, I - wait, what?”

“You can call me Haru.” The stranger - no, Haru - got to his feet and slipped on his shirt with a graceful ease, as if he hadn’t just fainted in the middle of the street not too long ago.

Makoto hurriedly stood up as well. “Wh-where are you going?”

“Now that I have recovered, it would be rude to take advantage of your hospitality any longer. I just need to get my camel and I can be on my way.”

“Wait, but - you’ve only just regained consciousness! You can’t just head out like this! Besides, you seem like you’ve traveled a long way to get here. What you need is proper rest. Do you have an inn in mind to spend the night in?”

That stopped Haru short. “Um, no - “

“Then if you don’t mind, you’re more than welcome to stay here for the night. I can only offer simple food, and my place isn’t exactly spacious, but you’ll be comfortable and won’t have to go out there to look for lodging. Most of the inns in town aren’t doing any business because of the drought anyway. Also, this way I can keep an eye on you and make sure you’re alright!”

“…”

“… d-did I say something strange?” Haru was staring intensely at him, as if his eyes could bore right through him. Makoto suddenly wished that he could dig a hole to hide in, or wipe out what he’d just said in the last few seconds with a wave of his hand. _Of course I said something strange - I sound like his mother or something, for crying out loud!_

“… I don’t know your name,” Haru said finally.

Makoto blinked in confusion. “M-my name? I, uh, I’m Makoto - “

“Makoto.” The corners of Haru’s mouth lifted slightly. “Alright, I’ll stay.”

…

Haru opened his eyes to the sight of moonlight streaming through the open window, soft beams falling on the sleeping form beside him. He watched as Makoto’s chest rose and fell once in deep slumber, then got up and left the room silently. He padded down the back stairs without making a single noise, then slipped down an alley and to the front of the pottery shop, where his camel lifted its head from where it rested beside a wall to blink slowly at him.

“Sorry I kept you waiting,” he told the camel as he stroked the fur on the back of its neck. “Let’s head back now.” And in the blink of an eye there was nothing left in the empty street, save for a stray wisp of mist shimmering under the moonlight.

…

On the other side of the city, a figure paced back and forth restlessly on the palace balcony. Then he noticed a slight stir of the curtains behind him just out of the corner of his eye, and turned to see Haru standing in front of him.

“You took your time.”

“I did.”

The other waited for a further explanation, then sighed when he realized there wouldn’t be any. “Well, at least you’re here. I was worried you might just vanish and not come back.”

“I already told you I would. I always keep my word.”

“Yeah yeah, that’s great.” Red eyes then narrowed. “So?”

Haru took a deep breath, then paused before letting it out. “You won, Rin.”

Razor-sharp teeth displayed in a grin glinted in the moonlight. “I knew I would.”

“No you don’t. You had your doubts as well.”

Rin threw up his hands. “Alright, I admit I did. I mean, I wouldn’t be surprised if none of my subjects were willing to give up their precious water for some random traveler. Guess we both got lucky though, since you apparently met an angel come straight from heaven to give you a drink.”

“He offered me food and shelter too.”

Rin made a sound that was a cross between a laugh and a snort. “Seriously? Well, that explains the late entrance. Did you use your djinn charm to enchant him or something?”

“I didn’t.” Haru’s eyebrows knitted together in annoyance. “You know, I just might decide to leave right this minute after all.”

“Nope. You always keep your word, remember?”

Haru sighed in frustration, knowing that there was no point in this banter. Rin did win, after all. “Fine, I’ll summon the rain. But you have to uphold your side of the deal as well.”

“Of course I will, what do you take me for? I’ll distribute the water from the royal stores like I promised - although I don’t really see the point when there’ll be rainfall anyway.”

“ _Rin_.”

“Alright alright, sheesh you’re one touchy djinn.” Rin’s light tone then grew serious. “I need to know for sure that you’ll summon the rain though. Believe me when I say the kingdom can’t last any longer if this situation goes on. I have to know the solution is on its way -  I can’t have my people suffer any longer.”

At the mention of ‘the people’, Haru recalled green eyes, a gentle hand passing him a slice of roti, and warm laughter ringing in his ears. “They won’t.” He raised a hand and jerked his fingers, and from somewhere high up in the sky a loud boom of thunder resounded. “Your solution’s already here.”

…

“That would be ten copper pieces. Thank you, have a good day.” Makoto stood outside his shop as he sent off his latest customer with a friendly wave, then looked up at the clear sky. The difference was this time the vast blue expanse above was dotted with fluffy white tufts of cloud here and there, and a light breeze ruffled Makoto’s fringe gently. It was as if the sudden rainstorm from a few days ago had completely washed away any trace of the drought overnight, until it was nothing more than a mere memory.

Just like Haru, Makoto thought. He’d woken up the morning after to find a puddle of rainwater underneath his open window - and an empty sleeping mat next to him. Even the camel outside was gone, though of course any traveler wouldn’t leave without their only form of transportation. Makoto could’ve dismissed the whole thing as just a delirious dream brought on by the excessive heat, but… well, the mat couldn’t have spread itself open, and of course there was the obvious depletion in his water stores.

And then there were those blue eyes - eyes that never seemed to leave his face throughout the night before, and would not be leaving his mind anytime soon either. The azure sky above him now somewhat reminded him of them, only it lacked… intensity.

Then a loud splash snapped him out of his reverie.

Makoto’s eyes instantly darted towards the source of the sound, and then it was all he could do to keep his jaw from falling off. Right there, in the water trencher he’d just installed in the front of his shop (well, he figured any weary animals who stopped by could use a drink) was -

“Haru?”

The water trencher certainly wasn’t big enough to hold a grown man comfortably, yet even with his legs dangling over the sides of the trencher Haru looked as if he were right at home there, soaked clothes and all. “Makoto.”

“Why - how - what happened?”

“I tripped and fell,” Haru said matter-of-factly, and Makoto couldn’t help but laugh.

“You sound more like you just want and sat in the trencher yourself though,” he joked as he walked over. “Or did you fall out of the sky and straight into there?”

Haru shrugged. “Maybe I did.”

 _I wouldn’t have trouble believing that._  There was so much he didn’t understand or even know about this mysterious traveler, who’d shown up right out of nowhere and had disappeared just as swiftly, yet against all odds here he was again. Makoto stopped in front of the trencher and smiled down at Haru. “So you’ve come for a drink of water again?”

“Well, it just so happens I’m currently sitting waist-deep in it.” Haru tilted his head up, and the corners of his mouth lifted slightly again. “But I’ll take you up on that offer,” he said as he accepted the and up and climbed out of the trencher,fingers gripping Makoto’s palm firmly.


	2. Incredible - Merman AU

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> If an accident or something happened, he was fully prepared to force the seaweed down Makoto’s throat if he had to, and Makoto’s resolutions could go to hell for all he cared. He would not risk losing the person he loved for anything.

Haru’s head broke the surface of the ocean and he took in a deep breath of air, letting the oxygen fill his lungs as much as possible. Switching from breathing through gills to using his nose instead always took some getting used to, but now that he’d been out of the water numerous times he only needed a couple of seconds to adjust. His fingers gripped the seaweed tightly as he made his way towards the shore.

Makoto was waiting for him under the cliffs like they’d agreed, sitting on the edge of a large rock with the waves lapping around his legs. His smile when he spotted Haru was as brilliant as ever, yet the falter in his expression did not escape the merman’s notice. He felt a twitch of pain in his chest at the sight, but still swam forward until he was right in front of Makoto looking up at him.

“Here.” He placed the seaweed in Makoto’s lap.

Makoto did not move for a moment, but eventually he picked up a strand of swaweed and held it up in front of his face. “So this one will allow me to breathe underwater for half a day?”

“Yes.” Haru furrowed his brow as he looked up at the human. “Makoto, are you sure you don’t want to use the seaweed that lasts for a full day instead?”

“I am. I don’t want to have a chance to regret and turn back.” Makoto chewed on the seaweed, barely gagging as he swallowed it down. He then looked up straight into Haru’s eyes with a firm gaze. “Let’s go.”

Haru nodded, then wordlessly slipped his hand into Makoto’s. He sighed inwardly with relief as Makoto’s smile relaxed into its usual warmth, and his other hand surreptitiously touched the seaweed he’d tied around one of his pelvic fins, similar to the type he’d given Makoto. If an accident or something happened, he was fully prepared to force the seaweed down Makoto’s throat if he had to, and Makoto’s resolutions could go to hell for all he cared. He would not risk losing the person he loved for anything.

…

Haru could still recall the first time he took Makoto under the sea as if it was yesterday. Makoto had been coughing a great deal at first, having almost choked on the seaweed when trying to swallow it before. However, soon he was too enraptured with the marine scenery spread out before him to do anything more than stare wide-eyed with his mouth open in amazement while Haru hid his smile as he gently tugged him along to keep his motionless body from floating away with the current.

“This… This is incredible!” Makoto had exclaimed, before blinking in surprise at the sound of his own voice underwater.

Haru had paused so that his new friend could catch up with him. “Yeah, it really is…” His voice trailed off. “What does ‘incredible’ mean?”

“Oh! Right, I forgot…” While Haru could form simple sentences in the human language like most merfolk, he still needed Makoto to explain almost any word he used that was four syllables or more.

“Incredible means… um, it means… well, all of this!” Makoto’s arms spread wide open, encompassing everything from in the vicinity from the brilliantly coloured beds of coral on the ocean floor to the schools of fish in all shapes and sizes swimming overhead.

Haru’s eyes followed the movements of Makoto’s hands. “So incredible means big?”

“No, that’s not it! Incredible means…” Makoto’s twelve-year-old brain kicked into overdrive trying to come up with an accurate definition. “Incredible means… something that you don’t see often, and that you didn’t expect to be so… um, to make you go all ‘ooh’ and ‘wow’! That’s what incredible’s like.”

Things that you didn’t expect, that make you go ‘ooh’ and ‘wow’… Haru recalled how Makoto had looked that day when he’d first seen the young merman emerge from the sea. His jaw had all but fallen off then. “So… Am I incredible?”

Makoto suddenly gulped down a mouthful of seawater and started spluttering. “You - I - you’re - “ he gasped between coughs.

Haru waited until he’d recovered before swimming closer. “… Well?”

Makoto suddenly became very interested in a bulbous pink anemone on the reef beside him. “W-well, I guess…” he told the anemone as he wrung his hands nervously, “… I-I suppose… yeah, you’re pretty incredible.” He turned back again, and Haru’s heart mysteriously skipped a beat at the bashful smile he was wearing.

“… Oh.” Haru flicked his tail once, then abruptly reached out to grip Makoto’s wrist. “Come on. There’s more that you haven’t seen yet.”

Makoto’s smile grew wider. “Okay!” And they were off again, legs and tail paddling side by side.

…

The boy from that day had grown into a tall and well-built young man in the years since, until Haru could swim at the speed he was accustomed to and still be neck to neck with Makoto. He now turned his head to the right, only to find that his lover was not beside him.

“Makoto?” Haru turned and scanned his surroundings until his eyes fell on the coral reef a few metres back, and he chuckled softly when he saw Makoto hovering over the same pink anemone from before. Smiling faintly, he swam back to where Makoto was.

“Haven’t you seen this anemone a hundred times before already?”

Makoto shrugged in return. “I could see this a million times and I’d still stop for a second glance. It’s not just the anemone either - all of this,” he gestured to the wide ocean aroun them, “I’ll never stop beng amazed by it.”

“Still ‘incredible’, huh?”

Makoto grinned as he leaned forward until his mouth was next to Haru’s ear. “You most of all.”

The tone was innocent enough, yet memories sprung unbidden to the front of Haru’s mind - the same mouth pressed against his own lips, kissing his collarbone, sucking on the sude of his neck. But this time, instead of the heat that usually welled up in his stomach at such recollections, what he felt was a sore ache in his chest. “Makoto… You don’t have to do this. There’s still the seaweed, and I can come on land any time I want. We can still be together - “

“But it’s not enough.” Haru fell silent at those words, allowing Makoto to continue speaking. “The seaweed only lasts for limited periods of time, and if you’re out of the water for too long you’ll disintegrate. In the end, there’ll always be a barrier between us, because we come from two different worlds.” A warm hand cupped Haru’s cheek. “That’s why you went to see the sea witch about turning yourself into a human, right?”

Haru gave a start. “H-how did you know about that?”

“Well, I’m pretty sure most merfolk don’t have extensive knowledge of magical mediums without good reason.” Makoto’s face grew serious. “You sounded hesitant when I asked you about them, so I figured there was something related to them that you were hiding from me. It wasn’t hard to put two and two together.”

“You’re too smart for your own good,” Haru muttered.

Makoto laughed gently. “No, I just know you too well.” His hands moved down to Haru’s bare shoulders. “I want to do this. I want to be part of your world, to experience what you do every day. I want you to be free instead of being tied down by the worries and suffering of the human world, free to swim anywhere you wish like you were meant to. And most of all, I want to swim with you – if you’ll let me, that is.”

“Of course I do,” Haru said firmly.

“Then it’s settled. I’ve already made up my mind about this, and nothing can change it.”

Haru looked into Makoto’s earnest face and could find no trace of the anxiety from earlier. He really means to do this. “Alright,” he said finally. “We’d better hurry then, we have to do this before the seaweed’s effects start wearing off.”

“I’ll be fine.” Makoto’s hands were holding Haru’s now. “I have you with me.”

…

The deep violet eyes scrutinized the mismatched pair before them. “So you wish to be one of the merfolk? To turn your back on everything you have ever known, and leave the world above the sea forever?”

“Yes,” the sandy-haired human said decisively.

The violet eyes blinked lazily. “It will be far from a pleasant experience. You will feel as if your lower half is encased in a fiery furnace, melting away your flesh to the bone as your legs are fused together. No human has ever attempted this before, so I cannot promise you that you will emerge from this unscathed. You might not even survive. Do you still wish to proceed?”

“I do.” The human was strangely calm even after hearing those words, as opposed to his fish-tailed companion who had gone visibly pale. It was him that the violet eyes focused on next.

“I remember you. You were here yourself not too long ago, seeking a transformation as well though of the opposite. Have you since convinced this human to take your place instead?”

“I did not do anything of the sort,” the merman declared. “Nor will I allow you to harm Makoto in any way.”

“Harm him? And why would I do that?” The violet eyes glinted with mirth. “It is only fair that I have payment in return for my services, but of course I would never have any ill intentions towards my patrons.” The eyes turned back to the human. “What I want from you is simple. I merely request your bond to the world above.”

Confusion crossed the human’s face. “My… bond…?”

“All your ties to the human world will be cut and given to me. After your transformation, you will not be able to leave the sea like other merfolk. While they can walk on the earth for periods of time when out of the water, you will disintegrate the moment the last drop of moisture evaporates from your skin. You will be bound to the ocean forever, never to set foot in your homeworld ever again.”

“No!” the merman cried before the human could speak. “Makoto has family living on land, and his friends as well. You can’t just tear him away from his former life like this! Take my bond instead, I can live without legs – “

“Haru.” The name was uttered softly, yet it was enough to cause the merman to fall silent. “I can’t ask that of you. I made this choice myself; it would be unfair to have you make the sacrifice for it.”

“Makoto – “

“If you had to stay underwater forever just so I can leave the ocean, that what would be the point of all this? What would be the use of being able to visit the human world if you can’t be there with me? I’ve already said goodbye to my family and friends; they understand and support my decision. I’m prepared to give up my old life completely.” The human looked at his partner straight in the eye. “It’s meaningless without you.”

The merman said nothing more, but leaned in and kissed his lover lightly on the lips before watching as he swam forward to take the vial of potion offered by a thick black tentacle. He uncorked the vial, then without hesitation put it to his lips and tiled his head backwards, his Adam’s apple bobbing up and down as he gulped down the entire contents.

The vial dropped from his loosened fingers and sank to the bottom, clinking against the sea bed just before he began to scream.

“Makoto!” Haru immediately rushed forward and hugged Makoto’s convulsing body tightly. His lips found the other’s and pressed against them tightly, absorbing his screams as he whispered soundlessly into Makoto’s mouth. You’re going to be fine, I’ve got you, you’ll be alright, you’re –

…

“Incredible!” Ran exclaimed the moment she laid eyes on her brother’s shimmering green tail. She plopped herself down on the wet sand, oblivious to the surf soaking her uniform as she stared transfixed at Makoto’s newly-acquired scales. “Can… can I touch them?”

“You have to be careful, they’re really fragile” Haru interjected. “These are made of shattered diamond from a fallen star.”

The twins gaped wide-eyed at that, until Ren suddenly piped up. “But I thought diamond was the hardest mineral in the world and almost unbreakable?”

Haru shrugged. “How would I know? I’ve never seen a diamond before.”

They all broke into laughter at that. “Alright Haru, don’t go telling tall tales to them now,” Makoto chided lightly. “Go ahead and touch them if you want, Ran.”

“I wanna touch them too!” Ren quickly joined his sister in running their hands over the smooth surface of Makoto’s tail.

“What are these things sticking out here?”

“They’re pelvic fins. And that one on the back is the anal fin.”

“Wow, it’s like you’re an actual fish! Or at least half of one.”

“That’s the general idea of a merman, yeah.”

“Ran, it’s almost lunchtime. We have to go now.”

“Oh! We’ll see you next time then, nii-chan!”

“Okay! Take care of each other on the way home!” Makoto waved until the twins were out of sight, then turned to smile up at Haru perched belly-down on a rock above him. “You were saying something?”

Haru pulled himself up so that he was sitting on the rock instead, his tail fins trailing in the water. “I asked whether you still wanted to hang around here for a bit or something.”

“Not really, I’m good. Let’s go home.”

“Okay.” Then Haru reached out a hand. “Help me down.”

Makoto blinked once, then grinned. “Anything you want,” he replied before tugging gently on Haru’s wrist, then catching his lover in an embrace as they both dived into the water.


	3. Drive By - Cafe/Coffee shop AU

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I only make coffee.”
> 
> “That’s why I’m here instead.”
> 
> “No, you’re here so I don’t have to bother myself with talking to customers, yet here I am running broke thanks to my cashier.”
> 
> “Love you too, Haru-chan.”
> 
> “Drop the -chan.”

They reached the square at 6am. In the dim light of early dawn, the two figures set up tables and unfolded chairs right in front of the truck. Just as the first rays of sunlight emerged through the morning mist, Haru noticed Makoto struggling with an umbrella and walked over to help.

“Here.” In the blink of an eye the pastel-colored umbrella was up properly, standing erect in the middle of the table it would provide shade for later on.

“Thanks.” Makoto’s smile was as brilliant as the rising sun itself.

“We should get ready. The customers will be here soon.”

“Right.” Makoto unlocked the padlock on the side of the truck and lifted the panel while Haru went inside. He first poured the dough he’d prepared the night before into the muffin trays, then slid them into the oven before starting up the coffeemaker. The click of the door told him that Makoto had come in as well, and soon he felt the familiar warmth radiating from behind him as Makoto took up his place behind the cashier. Everything was in place and ready to start the day.

The first patrons arrived around 7, mostly commuters looking for a quick bite to eat on the go as they ran to catch the early trains. Before long the university students started showing up too, as well as office workers from the nearby corporate buildings. There was also the odd retiree out on their morning walk attracted by the wafting smells of the baking muffins, which were done by the time the sun was entirely above the city skyline.

At about half past eight, a mother dropped in with three young preschoolers. The young ones were soon arguing over which flavor of cake to share together - apparently they were divided between moist chocolate and mocha vanilla.

“Why don’t you choose both flavors and buy two slices instead? That way your mom can have a half as well,” Makoto suggested with his customary smile.

“Oh no, I only have enough for one slice, sorry,” the mother interjected apologetically.

“It’s alright - the second slice is on the house.”

Haru waited until the beaming kids had found a seat at one of the tables with their mother to enjoy their cake before shaking his head at his boyfriend. “Makoto, you can’t keep giving food away to every kid that shows up, otherwise we won’t have anything left to sell.”

“But it’s so rare for us to get young customers,” Makoto protested in a joking tone.

“Since you love kids so much, you should operate an ice cream truck instead.”

“Only if you’re making the ice cream.”

“I only make coffee.”

“That’s why I’m here instead.”

“No, you’re here so I don’t have to bother myself with talking to customers, yet here I am running broke thanks to my cashier.”

“Love you too, Haru-chan.”

“Drop the -chan.”

Makoto laughed as he ducked to avoid the napkin thrown at him, then bent down to pick it up and toss it into the bin in a corner of the truck before turning around to serve the next customer.

…

They packed up and drove off at around eleven, reaching their next stop just as the lunch hour began. There was soon a line trailing down the side street where they were parked, with most of the customers in pantsuits or sporting ties. After two hours there was a brief lull in business as office hours resumed, only for things to pick up again with the end of school for the day. The students of the high school three streets down had always been loyal customers of their cafe - especially the female half.

“Tachibana-kun, a pumpkin spice latte please!”

“Eh? Has October begun early this year?”

A chorus of high-pitched giggles sounded from the front of the counter. “It doesn’t have to be October to order a pumpkin spice latte, Tachibana-kun! That’s just in America anyway - here we can have it any time we like!”

“That sounds great - especially if it’s from our cafe!”

“Oh of course, we wouldn’t dream of going anywhere else!”

“Really? Then thank you so much for all your support - we’re really lucky to have such wonderful customers like you.”

And cue Makoto’s patented heart-melting smile, Haru thought to himself, and he was immediately proven right by the squeals coming from behind him. He handed the pumpkin spice latte to Makoto, then busied himself with a new cup of coffee which he set aside before moving on to the next order.

Later, Makoto waved off the last customer in the line and let out a relaxed sigh as he took advantage of the short breather. It was then that he noticed the cup that had appeared on the countertop without his knowledge.

“Hmm? What’s this?” Makoto peered into the cup curiously, and a fragant whiff of cappuccino invaded his nostrils. His eyes widened at the intricate swirls running across the surface of the drink and forming the outline of a heart around the centrepiece of the design - the kanji for ‘love’.

Makoto set the cup down gently onto the countertop again, then turned to pull Haru from where he was pretending to fix a perfectly working blender into a hug.

…

Haru sat on the newly-cut grass, the smell of chlorophyll mingling with the hearty scent of the bagel in his hands. He took a bite just as Makoto sat down beside him, one hand holding a croissant in a bag.

“Did Nagisa like it?”

“He says he’ll drink nothing else for the rest of his life.”

“He said that last week after trying the mint tiramisu as well.”

“True. Rei said it needed a bit more milk though.”

“I didn’t know Rei had such a sweet tooth.”

“No, but he thinks it looks better with a lighter shade.”

Haru chuckled in mild amusement. “Rei hasn’t figured out that coffee is a drink and not a painting, has he?”

“Haru-chan, you’re directly quoting Rin from when he saw your latte art.”

“Drop the -chan.” Haru passed the bagel to Makoto and accepted the croissant in return. “So he was distracted enough to not bring up having us open our cafe near their bakery?”

“Almost. He only mentioned it once.”

Haru bit into the croissant and swallowed before speaking again. “He’ll stop eventually. If we ignore him for long enough.” He glanced sideways at Makoto. “If, well, you ever get tired of having to drive around all the time and want to settle down somewhere though - ”

“Don’t worry, I’m good.” Makoto tore a small piece of the bagel and tossed it to the pavement right next to where the truck was parked, then watched as a pigeon flew down to peck at the bread. “I’d never thought I would be working in a cafe before, yet here I am because my boyfriend happens to be the best barista who ever drove a truck - “

“ _Makoto_.”

The green-eyed cashier grinned. “What? It’s true. Anyway, I’m here because of you, so it doesn’t really matter where I end up as long as you’re there. You love being free to go anywhere you like, make coffee wherever you want, so I’ll love that too. And besides,” he added cheekily, “this way we won’t have to worry about mortgage payments.”

Next thing he knew he was pinned to the ground, with Haru’s palms pressing firmly down on his shoulders and their faces mere inches away from each other. “You,” Haru said in what was only slightly above a whisper, “were doing so well until you got to the mortgage payments.”

Makoto smiled angelically, then clutched Haru’s elbows and flipped the two of them over until he was the one pinning Haru to the ground. “I’ll be sure to do better next time then, boss,” he whispered in Haru’s ear.

Haru made a sound that was halfway between a laugh and a groan as he pushed against Makoto’s chest so he could sit up. “What did I ever do to deserve an employee like you.”

“You’re Haru-chan. That’s enough.”

“I already told you, drop the -chan.”

Makoto just laughed lightly as he got to his feet and offered a hand to Haru. “Come on, we should leave before it gets dark. I’ll drive this time?”

Haru smiled as he accepted the hand and pulled himself up with Makoto’s help. “Yeah, okay,” he replied as they walked off towards the truck together, their hands still in each other’s.


	4. At Pace's End - Pirate AU

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> By the time he sailed off with another pirate crew, he’d claimed Makoto’s virginity and given his in return.

Makoto finished wiping the last table and walked to the back of the counter to put the cloth away. The common room was deserted, the only light coming from the flickering oil lamp on the table nearest to the stairs. It was there that he sat down after he was done tidying up the counter, setting a small wooden box on the table as he pulled up a chair.

The box was covered with intricate carvings depicting all sorts of marine life, from turtles to seahorses to giant whales. Makoto rubbed his thumb gently against the dolphin carving on the lid, then opened it carefully. As a sort tinkling melody began to fill the room, he sat back and closed his eyes.

Haru had brought home all sorts of of fantastical treasures from his escapades on the high seas here, but the music box was the gift Makoto cherished the most. It wasn’t obtained in a pirate raid; a merchant had given it to Haru as thanks for rescuing him when he was found hanging onto a floating plank from his shipwrecked galley. Haru had insisted to Makoto that he’d only picked up the merchant so he could get a hefty reward out of it, yet he’d declined the merchant’s chest of gold coins as a sign of gratitude and would’ve done the same with the music box as well if the merchant hadn’t remarked on how fond Makoto seemed to be of it when it was played that one time.

Makoto still took it out whenever the merchant came by the inn when he was in town, but he only played it when he was alone by himself. It made the nights without Haru slightly more bearable, little as it was.

…

They’d grown up in the same harbor town together and were inseparable since birth, but even when he was young Makoto had known that his closest friend would run away to the sea one day. That day finally came the year they turned sixteen, when a pirate ship docked at the pier only to find a dark-haired teenager with a bag of clothing slung over his shoulder demanding to see their captain. It took hours of arguing, a whole lot of courage to ignore the threats of getting thrown off the ship straight into the ocean, and an obstinate refusal to accept a no, but by sunset Makoto was standing on the pier waving goodbye to Haru on the deck as the ship sailed away into the horizon.

Haru didn’t come back until over a year later, having narrowly escaped capture by the royal navy when the pirate ship had been overpowered and boarded and half the crew members killed in the ensuing fight while the others were taken to face the gallows. He spent the next few months helping Makoto in the inn owned by his parents and generally lying low to evade the authorities’ notice - all while doing some noticing of his own, for Makoto had grown in more ways than one ever since they parted. On his own part, Haru had learned quite a few things during his time at sea himself, including knowing exactly what he wanted and then wasting no time in taking it.

By the time he sailed off with another pirate crew, he’d claimed Makoto’s virginity and given his in return.

Haru would come back every few months after that, dropping by for a week or two after his crew had pulled off a successful raid and came ashore to spend their share of the booty on wine and women. He didn’t have a taste for alcohol, and women were out of the question for him anyway. Instead he saved up his money until he had enough to buy his own ship, and soon he was captaining his own crew and becoming the next terror of the seven seas. In the meantime, Makoto took over the inn after his parents retired and soon built a reputation for owning the best lodgings to be had in the harbor. Then one day he emerged from the storeroom carrying a huge sack of flour only to look up and see Haru kneeling in front of him with a ring in his open palm - and promptly dropped the sack on his foot.

Even with clouds of flour surrounding them, he still managed to nod a frantic yes and hold out his hand for Haru to put the ring on, before pulling him into a long and deep kiss as fine white powder settled on their hair and faces and basically every surface in the vicinity. He spent an hour cleaning the ring until it was gleaming afterwards, and his foot only stopped throbbing the next morning, but what with being the happiest man in the world and all he didn’t mind in the least.

…

Makoto now ran his fingers over the ring on his right hand lightly, a mix of emotions welling up inside him. He loved Haru from the bottom of his heart, and if he had to share his husband with the sea so be it. Haru had always been a free spirit, going wherever the wind took him, and he wouldn’t change that for the world. It was part of what made him the unique and amazing person that Makoto had fallen for, after all. Sometimes though… Just sometimes… he wished he didn’t have to feel so lonely.

“I don’t need to have you here with me all the time,” he told the music box. “I already have your love, and that’s more than enough. Seeing you happy in living the life you want makes me happy too. It’s just… Sometimes I wish you could be with me now, even for a short while. Even if you have to leave the next day, or even if you could only be here for a few minutes - I’d treasure those moments dearly anyway, because… well, I guess I just love you too much,” he said softly.

“I love you too much as well,” said a voice from behind him, and Makoto all but fell out of his chair in fright.

“Who - what -  _Haru?_ ”

Makoto stared open-mouthed at the apparition before him. He saw the silky black bangs that he had a habit of running his fingers through, the almost-invisible dusting of freckles that he loved to kiss gently when they were in bed together, the sapphire eyes that reflected the ocean in them. But Haru was away at sea, he was sure of it, so how -

“I’m sorry I scared you,” said the voice again, and all of Makoto’s doubts were completely blown away. This was no apparition - by some strange, no, God-given stroke of fate, Haru was here right now with him. Makoto tried to stand up, but his legs gave way under him and he sat down on the floor with a thump instead.

“Makoto? Are you alright?” Haru quickly got on his knees and placed his hands on Makoto’s shoulders.

“I’m… fine. I’m more than fine, actually. But Haru… why are you here?”

Haru blinked once, then replied as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, “To see you, of course.”

“I know, but it’s only been… how long has it been since you last came back?”

The pirate captain let out a short huff as he hugged Makoto to his chest. “I don’t remember and I don’t care. I just missed you too much and now I finally have you with me, and that’s all that matters.”

“Haru…” Makoto paused, then a smile slowly broke across his face. “Yeah, that’s all that matters.”

They stayed like that for a few seconds, then Haru cleared his throat. “So… wanna get off the floor any time soon?”

Makoto chuckled. “I think my legs aren’t capable of bearing my weight just yet. Maybe if you give me a hand up?”

“No problem.” Haru started to get up, then looked as if he thought better of it before lifting Makoto bridal-style all off a sudden. Amidst the other’s surprised yelps, he stood his husband up on his feet while keeping an arm around his waist the whole time.

“That… that was more than a hand,” Makoto finally said with a shaky laugh.

Haru shrugged. “Thought you looked like you needed it. Although to be honest, I wasn’t sure whether I was strong enough to get you off the floor in the first place.”

“I’m starting to wonder what you’ve been up to these months away at sea now.”

“Just raiding ships and terrorizing merchants - the usual. You should come along and see for yourself sometime.”

“You know I’m too chicken-hearted for the pirate life.” Makoto slipped his hand into Haru’s. “But if you’re there with me… I think I might be able to manage.”

Haru finally smiled, and Makoto’s heart leapt at the sight. “Then I’ll be sure to be by your side every step of the way,” he promised as they walked up the stairs together.


	5. Giant Mermaid - Genderbend AU

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Oh, thank goodness! Now that Tourmaline’s - _sprouted a tail_?!”

Tanzanite was having a bad morning.

She might’ve been made on Earth, but she’d never felt out of place when with the other Ocean Gems. They were the best friends she could ever hope for, and most of the time she even forgot that they were from that mysterious place called the Homeworld, where nearly all Gems came from and where she didn’t. However, there were times that life decided to deliver a stark and abrupt reminder of the fact – though falling flat onto her face was a new low in her brief two thousand years of life.

“No other Gem ever needed glasses,” she grumbled as she picked herself up from the floor and dusted herself off. Exasperated, she squinted at her surroundings in the hope that her spectacles would somehow miraculously appear before her, but as with the past hour they stubbornly stayed missing.

“This is stupid,” she muttered to herself. “Glasses can’t vanish into thin air – it’s scientifically impossible!” She’d considered a whole variety of more plausible possibilities, from ants having carried off her glasses to Amber playing a prank on her by swiping them. Well, she hadn’t come across any glasses-stealing ants, and Amber had sworn up and down that she hadn’t gone anywhere near them. “I could help you search though!” she’d suggested excitedly. “We’ll find your glasses in no time if we do it together, Tanzy!”

Tanzanite had declined politely – she decided she would make much better progress without Amber’s ‘help’, though she didn’t tell her that of course. She did tell her for the millionth time to stop calling her Tanzy though.

“Tan - za - nite,” she enunciated slowly, emphasizing every syllable clearly. “That’s not hard to pronounce - why does she have to call me something as silly and childish as Tanzy?! I already have a very beautiful name, thank you very much!”

“Tanzanite?”

“Yes, that!” Tanzanite exclaimed, before realizing that it was another voice which had spoken. She whipped her head around in a flash, but all she saw was a blurry figure.

“A-amber? No… are you Emerald?” The figure seemed to be even taller than Emerald, but that might be because she couldn’t see that clearly without her glasses. Just her luck that she had to be a short-sighted Earth-made Gem.

“Neither. Here, I found your glasses.”

“Oh, thank you.” Tanzanite accepted the glasses with relief and put them on. Then her eyes focused on her saviour, and her mouth fell open.

“T-tourmaline?”

“Right this time.” Tourmaline’s cyan eyes crinkled in amusement.

“But… How? Emerald and Aquamarine, when did they…”

“I just woke up this morning as myself,” Tourmaline explained simply. “Ever since then I’ve just - ”

“Tourmaline? What the hell are you doing here?”

The two Gems turned towards the source of the sound. “Good morning to you too, Carnelian,” Tourmaline greeted.

“And what’s so good about this morning?” Carnelian marched straight up to them while keeping her eyes fixed on Tourmaline’s face, even when she was standing right in front of the taller gem and had to tilt her head almost all the way up to do so. “Please don’t tell me Emerald and Aqua were messing around last night again.”

Tourmaline raised an eyebrow. “‘Messing around’?” she repeated in a pointed tone.

Carnelian winced. “Okay, that came out wrong, sorry.” She glanced up at Tourmaline with a frown. “You know what happens when you fuse too frequently though.”

“I know,” Tourmaline replied with a wry smile, “but that’s not why you’re here, isn’t it?”

“Damn well it isn’t,” Carnelian muttered. “Don’t think you can get out of patrol duty just because you’re fused with your girlfriend, Aqua. I’ll pry you out from inside there with my own bare hands if I have to, you hear me?” she all but yelled up into Tourmaline’s face, while the latter simply blinked unfazed.

“And you!” she snapped at Tanzanite, who gave an involuntary yelp of fright. “What’s this I hear from Amber about you losing your glasses?”

“She didn’t lose them,” Tourmaline interjected, “she just left them on the bathroom sink.”

Tanzanite suddenly felt like she was only two feet tall. “Oh,” was all she managed to say as she remembered washing her face after she got out of bed that morning. She must’ve been too bleary with sleep and forgot to put her glasses back on. Half a millennium she’d been wearing them already, and this sort of thing still happened.

“T-thanks for returning them, Tourmaline,” she stammered while feeling half a fool.

“Well great, you just completed your good deed for the day,” Carnelian snarked. “Now can we start patrol duty already?”

“No,” Tourmaline spoke up. She paused. “There’s something important that we need first.”

The other two stared at her curiously. “What is it?” Tanzanite asked hesitantly.

Tourmaline looked at them both with a serious expression. “Breakfast.”

…

“Aqua’s not going to thank you for finishing off the last of the mackerel, Mally,” Amber remarked with a grin as the two of them sat at the table chewing on their food.

“She’ll forgive me, I’m sure,” Tourmaline replied nonchalantly before taking another bite of her fish.

Amber giggled. “I’m lucky I don’t have a gem fusion who steals my favourite food - I would never forgive anyone who touches my Iwatobi rolls, even if I’m half of them,” she declared.

“Nobody else eats those things, Amber.”

“But Tanzy does!”

“I already told you, I only tried it because I was curious!” Tanzanite protested from across the table. “And when are you going to stop calling me Tanzy?”

“She never will, four-eyes. Get used to it,” Carnelian smirked from beside her before shooting an impatient glare at Tourmaline. “There, you’ve had your precious mackerel, now can we be on our way before the sun sets, huh?”

“Just take a day off, Nelly,” Amber suggested with her mouth half-full of bread. “There haven’t been any Gem monster attacks lately anyway.”

“Yeah, but any day we decide to slack off could be the day they decide to suddenly show up and decimate the entire ocean,” Carnelian said ominously. “I’ve had a bad feeling ever since that red eye-thing sighting from last week. It can’t mean anything good. That’s why we have to get going - now.”

“Okay okay, I get it already.” Tourmaline gulped down the last of her mackerel and stood up. “If I get indigestion from this it’ll be all your fault.”

“Tourmaline, we don’t digest food at all. Now hurry up.”

Tourmaline shrugged, then her whole body started to glow as it seemed to collapse on itself. The glowing mound then separated into two intertwined parts, which both took on feminine shapes and solidified.

As the glow faded, Aquamarine unwrapped her arms from around Emerald’s shoulders and walked over to Carnelian. “There. We can go now.”

“Good,” Carnelian said shortly. She turned to the other three. “Amber, Tanzanite, you guys take the coast. We’ll keep an eye out for each other in case something happens to the other party. Emerald, you stay here and hold the fort.”

“Got it.” Emerald started to walk out of the kitchen, pausing only to plant a kiss on Aquamarine’s forehead. “Take care of yourself out there, sweetie.”

“You too.” Aquamarine reached up to return the gesture, then watched with a small but fond small as Emerald disappeared through the doorway. She then turned only to see Carnelian making gagging faces while Amber giggled and Tanzanite tried to maintain a straight face. “Oh, cut it out.”

…

“Emerald and Aquamarine really love each other a lot, don’t they?” Tanzanite wondered later as she walked along the coast road with Amber.

The yellow Gem stopped and stared at her violet-hued friend with wide eyes. “Tanzy, that’s the biggest understatement I’ve heard in the last three thousand years,” she stated dramatically.

Tanzanite could’ve replied to that with any number of different things, but the one she ended up using was: “Then what was the biggest understatement before three thousand years ago?”

Amber grinned. “Emmy’s observation that Aqua was fond of mackerel.” She put her hands behind her head as they continued walking. “But yeah, the two of them are the perfect pair of lovebirds. Sort of like toffee, I guess - they’re really gooey-sweet, and it takes forever to get them unstuck.”

“Well… if you say so,” Tanzanite said hesitantly, having never actually tried toffee before and thus with no way of knowing whether Amber’s description was accurate. She never did get used to the human process known as ‘eating’. “But why would Tourmaline suddenly wake up as, well, Tourmaline?”

Amber kicked a stray pebble on the road and sent it skittering in front of her. “Do you still remember what Emmy said about gem fusions before when you asked her?”

“Of course. Gem fusions happen when two Gems agree to fuse and create an entirely different being together. Normally Gems only fuse if there is a strong enough bond of trust between them.”

“Tanzy, you sound like a textbook,” Amber quipped. “But yeah, you gotta trust your partner if you wanna fuse - and trust in each other is something Emmy and Aqua have loads of! You’ve already seen what they’re like around each other; they know everything about the other and can practically read each other’s minds. They still do their dance when they fuse of course, but they’re already so close that they’re able to skip that part and just, well, fuse! Heck, one of them could trip on something and fall on the other and chances are Tourmaline might show up anyway!” she said with a laugh.

Well, at least Tanzanite somewhat understood that - barring the part about tripping. “So since they can fuse so easily, why don’t they just stay fused all the time? And Carnelian said something before about what would happen if they fused too frequently; what did she mean by that?”

Amber’s grin faded slightly, replaced by a more serious expression. “About that.. Well, imagine that you’re really close with someone yourself, like Emmy and Aqua. You spend nearly all your time with them, and you love being together a lot. Then suddenly, out of the blue, your mind sort of just goes into sleep mode. It’s like your brain goes blank and temporarily stops functioning, because you’re not yourself any more.

Fusing is something like that - the personality of the Gem fusion takes over, while the original Gems become part of the fusion’s subconscious. Their memories and knowledge are available to the Gem fusion, but they themselves are in a hibernation-like state and it’s the Gem fusion who makes her own choices and actions. It’s the same the other way around to an extent as well - the Gem fusion’s mind becomes part of the original Gems’, so they can still remember things from when they were fused and so on. When you do it frequently though, especially when you’re really in sync with your partner, the lines between the two of you and your fusion may be blurred until you don’t even really know who you are any more.”

Tanzanite blinked in surprise - she had no idea it was that serious. “So does that mean that Emerald and Aquamarine once…”

Amber stopped walking and leaned against the barrier on the side of the road. “It was after the Homeworld Gems left, when we were expanding the original Ocean Temple so we could stay permanently. Mally did the most work since she was the strongest of us all, and with the Homeworld Gems gone there wasn’t any pressure on her to defuse or anything. So she remained herself, until one night when a terrible thunderstorm happened.

A ship got caught in the huge waves and was smashed to bits. We wanted to help, but Nelly said it was too dangerous and we might not make it out ourselves. There was nothing else we could do but watch from the temple, trying to block out the screams that didn’t stop until almost dawn. By the time the sun came up, bodies were starting to be washed ashore.

Mally wasn’t the same after the incident. She used to love the ocean, but for days after that she wouldn’t even look at it. Then she started doing weird stuff, like going up to the cliffs near the temple and running straight for the edge, only to stop right before going over into the water. Soon she was nearly tearing herself apart, yet she still stayed herself. It’d been nearly half a century since Emerald and Aquamarine fused; it was as if they’d forgotten what it was like to be apart instead of being one body.

Finally, during another stormy night, Nelly and I heard a scream from Mally’s room - well, it was actually Emmy’s, but Mally always slept there when she was with us. We ran over to find Emmy and Aqua curled up on the bed, shaking and convulsing. Even then they were hugging each other, Aqua trying to comfort Emmy even when she wasn’t looking too good herself.

Nelly said later that Emmy’s fear of the ocean from watching the shipwreck was set against Aqua’s love of water the whole time, until it forced Mally into splitting. The reason why she hadn’t done so earlier was because Aqua’s subconsciousness had been comforting Emmy’s while they were still fused, but eventually the conflicting emotions got the better of them. Even Aqua didn’t go near the ocean for a few days after their defuse, but eventually they recovered.”

There was a silent pause after Amber finished, then the shorter Gem gave a shaky laugh. “Wow, I really screwed up the mood, didn’t I?”

“It’s alright,” Tanzanite said immediately. “I’m glad you told me. Now I know - ”

She never got to tell Amber what she knew, because that was when the giant tentacle shot out of the ocean and into the air.

…

The orca dove through the water swiftly, using the ocean currents to propel its greenish body forward. It didn’t even stop to see if the goggled penguin was following it; its mind was preoccupied with one thought only.

Please let Aqua and the others be alright, they have to be alright, wait for me I’m comin-

Then it stopped in its tracks and stared with wide-eyed horror at the scene unfolding before it.

A gargantuan creature that somewhat resembled the picture of the kraken in that book of ocean-related mythology Carnelian had snitched from the local library before was currently latched onto a large shipwreck, half of its huge tentacles wound around whatever was left of the ship’s mast and deck. The other half was swatting away two weapon-wielding figures as if they were nothing more than bothersome flies.

“Carnelian! Amber!” Emerald cried as she shifted back to her original shape. Her eyes darted around frantically as they looked for another who was missing, until -

“Aqua!”

Emerald dived towards the sea bed, where Aqua was sprawled above a coral reef. Her left leg was jutting out at an odd angle, she quickly noticed as she swam over to her side.

“Em-emerald?” Aquamarine’s eyes opened as Emerald cradled her head.

“Aquamarine! Are you alright?” Tanzanite had joined them as well, her goggles perched on the bridge of her nose. “What happened?”

Aquamarine sat upright slowly, Emerald’s hand guiding her back as she straightened. “I just took a hit, that’s all. I’m fine now,” she said firmly as she moved to swim upwards, only to suddenly wince painfully and collapse onto the ocean floor again.

“Aqua, your leg’s injured. You can’t go out there like this!” Emerald insisted worriedly.

“Nonsense - as long as I haven’t retreated into my gem I’m not going to stay down without fighting.” Aquamarine gritted her teeth and moved upright again, but Emerald held her back.

“You’re not doing any fighting right now. Tanzanite, go find the others and help them. I’ll stay here.” Emerald watched as Tanzanite nodded and swam off, then turned her attention back to her partner. “We need to get you back to the Temple now - you can’t stay out here any longer.”

“I can’t leave Carnelian and the others to face that thing by themselves!” Aquamarine all but shouted. “I’m not leaving them behind!”

“Fine, then stay here while I - ”

“Emerald.” Aquamarine gripped Emerald’s wrist tightly. “I’m not going to sit by while you fight that Gem monster either. Especially you. You know I can’t do that.”

Emerald fell silent for a while, then suddenly she said in a soft voice, “Fuse with me then.”

Aquamarine stared at her. “…What?”

“I said, fuse with me. That way we can both fight - together.”

“But Emerald, there’s no way - I mean, I’m injured - ”

“You’re injured, but Tourmaline isn’t. I know she’ll be affected somewhat, but her strength doesn’t come from our physical conditions.” Bright green eyes met blue and fixed them in their gaze. “She can do it. We can do it.”

Aquamarine didn’t move for a moment, then she gave a small nod. “We won’t be able to do our dance though.”

Emerald gave a little laugh. “We didn’t do our dance last night either, yet Tourmaline was still there to return Tanzanite’s glasses. Just stay with me and we’ll be able to do this.”

Aquamarine looked down at the hand offered by her partner. Then she smiled, reached out her own hand, and let herself be pulled forward.

…

Amber was flailing to retrieve her glaive that had been knocked out of her hand - for the fourth time - when she suddenly spied what was ahead and yelled jubilantly. “Tourmaline!”

Carnelian whipped her head around from where her hook swords were holding off another of the giant tentacles and grinned when she saw the familiar large figure swimming towards them. “About time. Good job, Aqua and Emmy.”

“Oh, thank goodness!” Tanzanite exclaimed as she wound a sash around another tentacle. “Now that Tourmaline’s - sprouted a tail?!”

“The giant mermaid is back!” Amber exclaimed almost with glee!

Tourmaline simply smiled before reaching behind her back to pull out a staff from the gemstone located between her shoulder blades. Her other hand summoned a falchion from the stone in the hollow of her neck, which she then threw up before swiping her staff at the blade. In the blink of an eye, she was clutching a large scythe over her chest.

“Tanzanite, try to bind as many tentacles as you can with your sashes! Carnelian, Amber, hold off any further attacks. I’m going straight in for the heart,” she called.

“Roger that!” Amber chirped as she gripped her glaive tightly, then they all launched into their group attack.

Tanzanite held onto her sashes with all the strength she had, watching as Carnelian and Amber sliced away at the Gem monster’s other limbs. She saw Tourmaline make a beeline straight for the depths of the shipwreck, her shapeshifted tail propelling her quickly through the water until she was almost a cyan blur. The last she saw of her was the sharp glint of her scythe as she disappeared into the hull of the ship, and a second of trepidation passed before everything was suddenly enveloped in smoke.

…

“You sure you don’t want to head out with us, Em? It’ll be way more interesting than staying home with Miss-It’s-Been-Two-Weeks-And-I’m-Still-An-Invalid, you know.”

Aquamarine shot Carnelian a pointed look from her place on the lounge chair while the other returned a smirk, while Emerald laughed. “It’s okay, I’m fine being bored with Aqua here.”

“Yeah yeah, go play doctor and patient or whatever. At least I’ve got you two, eh?” Carnelian slung an arm each around Amber and Tanzanite. “Hey Am, what’s your human name again?”

“I’m Nagisa!” Amber declared cheerfully. “And this is Rei!”

“I thought that was Carnelian’s name?” Aquamarine interjected.

“I already told you a million times before, I’m Rin.” Carnelian shook her head in despair. “Honestly, even Nitori remembers things better than you.”

“I don’t know who Nitori is.”

“That’s because you never pay attention. Seriously, I finally cancel patrol duty after you guys have been harping me about it for so long and you choose to stay home instead with your completely-healed ‘injured’ leg. Live a little, won’t you?”

“I already do enough living with Emerald by my side.”

“Alright alright, I’m out of here before the mushy feels get to me. Come on, you two.” And the three of them were gone out of the room in a flash.

Emerald tucked her hand into Aquamarine’s as she sat down on the lounge chair beside her. “Enough living with me by your side, huh?”

“Yeah. I’m all set as long as I’ve got this.” Aquamarine gestured to their joined hands, and they shared a smile before looking out on the sea from the deck.


	6. It Was Not So Bad After All - Future Fish AU

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Who knows? Maybe you inherited a mackerel-loving gene from your dad.”
> 
> “Shouta, I’m adopted.”
> 
> “It’s a contagious gene. All members of the Tachibana household get it, blood-related or not.”
> 
> “That’s ridiculous.”

For some unknown reason, Haru-papa always cooked mackerel.

No matter what time of the day it was, as long as it was a meal prepared at home it would definitely include mackerel in one way or another. Breakfast might be mackerel on toast; lunch might consist of grilled mackerel and rice; dinner might include mackerel soup. She wasn’t even sure how in the world Haru-papa had thought of incorporating mackerel into a soup of all things, yet apparently that wasn’t the most bizarre dish he could invent.

“Mackerel and pineapple on pizza? Seriously?”

“Yes,” Kiku sighed in response to Shouta’s wide-eyed expression. “That was what we had for dinner last night.”

“So? Did it taste weird?”

She furrowed her brow in thought. “Actually, it was rather tasty.”

“Huh.” Shouta leaned back against the backrest of her chair, her face breaking out into a grin. “Who knows? Maybe you inherited a mackerel-loving gene from your dad.”

“Shouta, I’m adopted.”

“It’s a contagious gene. All members of the Tachibana household get it, blood-related or not.”

“That’s ridiculous.” She would’ve said more, but just then the teacher entered the classroom and it was time for the lesson to begin.

After school, the two of them walked home together, her best friend chattering on excitedly about her parents’ latest tales from the police station they worked at while she listened silently. She was never one for talking a lot, content to let others lead the conversation. Mako-papa always remarked that she and Haru-papa were similar in that regard.

They parted ways at a crossroads and she turned left, climbing a flight of steps up a hill until she reached the top and could see her house down the road.

“I’m home,” she announced as she pulled the sliding door open and stepped into the hallway. It was a habit of hers, even when she knew there was nobody at home. Her parents usually wouldn’t be back until sundown, when Haru-papa would close the cafe and Mako-papa’s shift at the fire station would end. Then they would return home to eat dinner with her.

She took a bath, did her homework and read a novel, and the afternoon passed by in a flash. When the sky turned pink outside she left her bedroom and headed downstairs to set the table for dinner. She was capable of cooking dinner by herself, but Haru-papa insisted on preparing the evening meal after he returned home, and nobody else was allowed to fill in. So she laid out the chopsticks and bowls, then sat down on the sofa in the living room to wait for the sound of her parents’ footsteps outside the front door.

But the sky darkened outside the window, and soon night had fallen already, yet her parents still hadn’t returned home. She found herself staring at the clocking hanging on the wall every few minutes, watching the seconds tick by, and still they did not appear. By now she was starting to worry; they had never been late in coming home before. Did something happen? Were they alright? Where were they? Would they even come home safely?

Then she heard a key turning in the lock of the front door, and she all but flew off the sofa in her haste.

“Papa! What – what  _happened_?” The first thing she noticed was the bandage around Mako-papa’s left forearm, and her mouth fell open in shock. Other than that he seemed fine though, and Haru-papa appeared to be okay as well, except for slight signs of fatigue.

“I got injured when responding to a call to the fire station, but I’m alright now,” Mako-papa explained. “It took me some time to get treated at the hospital though, so that’s why I was late. I managed to call Haru, and he rushed over to the hospital to see me.”

“You should’ve called home as well,” she accused in a tremulous voice, but her face displayed her relief clearly.

“We’re sorry we didn’t,” Haru-papa said as he enveloped his daughter in a hug. “We promise we won’t make you worry about us again. Now let’s go get some dinner, shall we?”

She smiled up at her parents. “Okay.”

Later, Kiku kept glancing at her parents as they sat down to dinner. She hadn’t fully appreciated being able to eat together as a family before, but after that scare earlier she knew she would cherish every moment she spent with them even more. Putting a piece of fried mackerel into her mouth, she chewed and swallowed, then decided it was not so bad after all.


	7. Miscellaneous - Mangaka AU

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I’m drawing this oneshot for the next issue of the magazine where a fashion design student gets a biology major to be his model and they start spending time together. Only…” Haru finally looked up from his drawing. “I don’t know the first thing about fashion design schools.”

“Makoto, we need to catch the next train to Tokyo.”

Makoto didn’t even bat an eyelid as he slid Haru’s plate onto the table in front of him. “Really? What for?”

Haru speared a piece of mackerel on a chopstick with his left hand, while his right hand never stopped moving across the paper as it covered the blank white space with sketches and lines. “The Mode Gakuen website says one of its schools is right in front of the Tokyo terminal station. The others are in Shinjuku, Osaka and Nagoya, so this one’s the closest to Iwatobi.”

“I see.” A pause. “What kind of school is Mode Gakuen again?”

“A training college. Their Fashion Design Department is supposed to be really good.”

Makoto waited for further elaboration, but his boyfriend did nothing else other than chewing on his mackerel while filling another page with more sketches, so he only smiled and sighed with mock exasperation. “And you want to go there because…?”

“I’m drawing this oneshot for the next issue of the magazine where a fashion design student gets a biology major to be his model and they start spending time together. Only…” Haru finally looked up from his drawing. “I don’t know the first thing about fashion design schools.”

Makoto chuckled. “Then draw about something else instead – maybe a manga editor gets a new author and they start spending time together?”

Haru only snorted as he impaled more mackerel on his chopstick. “Already done before – remember  _Sekaiichi Hatsukoi_? I want to do something more original.”

“But at least you have plenty of experience when it comes to being a manga author whose boyfriend is also his editor,” Makoto reminded him with a wink.

Haru kicked Makoto’s feet lightly under the low table. “Idiot. We were already dating before you became my editor. Now are you going to take me to Tokyo or not?”

“I’ll take you anywhere you want,” Makoto reassured him cheerfully. “But how do you plan to get the inspiration sources you need there? Class might be still in session when we get there.”

“Simple. We wait until classes end, then you go charm the girls with your award-winning smile and I’ll start asking questions.”

“So you have an ulterior motive for making me take you there!” Makoto tried to steal Haru’s mackerel in playful retaliation, but Haru fended him off skillfully with his lone chopstick. In the end, Makoto set down his own chopsticks and raised his hands in front of his chest as a sign of surrender.

Haru snatched a piece of mackerel from Makoto’s plate in triumph. “Well, you’re my editor, so you’re supposed to help me finish my manuscript in any way you can, right?”

Makoto grinned. “I’m pretty sure being a foil for young women isn't part of my job description, but of course I’ll help. It’s my duty both as an editor and as your boyfriend, right?”

“Right.” Haru then drew one last curve before handing the page to Makoto. “Here, take a look at this.”

Makoto pushed his glasses up his nose before reading the page. “This character looks a bit like Rin”

“I did base him slightly on Rin, yeah.”

“He’s the fashion design student, right? I guess that does kind of fit. So does that make Sousuke the Biology major?”

“I doubt Sousuke can even remember the complete digestive system of the human body.”

“Haru-chan, that’s mean.”

“Don’t call me –chan.” Haru swallowed another bite of mackerel before speaking again. “I want to find out how exams work in real fashion design schools work – what the students need to do, what materials they might need, and so on. In fact, I’m not even sure whether they do use models in fashion design exams.”

“Ah, so you want to get more in-depth knowledge, do you?”

“Well, it’s more that Google isn’t really helpful on this subject. Besides, I also want to look at some designs from actual students to get some ideas for making my own designs. And see their campus too, so I know what to draw for the backgrounds. Oh, also apparently there are these things called ‘mood boards’ that are sometimes used in fashion design courses as well – maybe I’ll get to see some examples as well. And – Makoto, why are you staring at me like that?”

Makoto gave a shake of his head as if he’d just awakened. “Oh, sorry. It’s just… well, it’s kinda cute watching you go on about looking for all those things for your manga and why you want to do so. Seeing you so passionate about what you do – I guess that’s just another thing I love about you,” he finished as he crinkled his eyes in an adoring smile.

Haru busied himself with another blank piece of paper to hide the flush on his face. “You should consider being a shoujo manga artist yourself, since you’re so good at spouting lines like that.”

“Can’t do that – my romantic lines are for Haru-chan only.”

“I already told you, stop calling me –chan,” Haru admonished even as he put a piece of his mackerel on Makoto’s plate. “So when can we go then?”

Makoto made a pondering hum before breaking into a smile. “Right after we finish eating lunch then, what do you think? And maybe we wander around the city a bit and grab a bit to eat there after you’ve finishing gathering your source materials?”

Haru smiled as he sorted his sketches neatly and put them aside. “That sounds good,” he replied before letting Makoto feed him a piece of mackerel.


End file.
